Conroe safe from annexation reform law -- for now

City likely exempt from new annexation law SB6 until 2020

Conroe Mayor Toby Powell, who was then a candidate for mayor, speaks at a forum in April Sound in 2016.

Conroe Mayor Toby Powell, who was then a candidate for mayor, speaks at a forum in April Sound in 2016.

Photo: Michael Minasi, Photographer

Photo: Michael Minasi, Photographer

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Conroe Mayor Toby Powell, who was then a candidate for mayor, speaks at a forum in April Sound in 2016.

Conroe Mayor Toby Powell, who was then a candidate for mayor, speaks at a forum in April Sound in 2016.

Photo: Michael Minasi, Photographer

Conroe safe from annexation reform law -- for now

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A new law that would allow residents to vote on whether they want to be annexed by a nearby city isn't being looked upon too kindly by some city governments, but it's not expected to have an impact on Conroe until 2020.

Senate Bill 6, which had the backing of four local lawmakers, is being described by supporters as annexation reform, giving residents a voice when a neighboring city wants to annex the area they're living in. But opponents of the bill say it will hurt the ability of cities to expand, while also limiting their ability to pull in more tax dollars.

Under the law, which goes into effect in Dec. 1 after being signed into law by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott during the Legislature's special session this summer, residents of an area that a city is eyeing can demand a vote before being annexed by that municipality. That is, so long as the county the city is located in has a population of at least 500,000.

"In Texas, of all places, property rights matter," Abbott said when he signed the legislation. "Residents from across the state that have expressed their concerns about feeling abused by the annexation process have had their voices heard. I'm proud to sign legislation ending forced annexation practices, which is nothing more than a form of taxation without representation, and I thank the Legislature for their attention to this important issue during the special session."

Rep. Will Metcalf, R-Conroe, who was one of the co-sponsors of the bill, says he "was proud to support" the measure. Metcalf says the new law "reforms the municipal annexation process to protect homeowners from being annexed by cities to create a larger tax base." Likewise, Sen. Brandon Creighton, R-Conroe, a co-author of the bill, Rep. Cecil Bell, R-Magnolia, a sponsor, and Rep. Mark Keough, R-The Woodlands, all voted in favor of the bill.

Although the new law limits the ability of cities to expand by gobbling up territory -- like Conroe has in the past -- the details in the bill won't stop Conroe from annexing any territory until the 2020 census.

Under the bill, cities that are located in counties with a population of less than 500,000 are considered "Tier 1" cities and still will have the power to annex more land without a vote by residents of the area. The last Census figures have Montgomery County with a population of 455,746, placing Conroe in the Tier 1 category.

But a city within a county with a population of more than 500,000 is considered a "Tier 2" city, which will require an election before an area can be annexed. By the time the 2020 Census is compiled, Montgomery County's population most likely will surpass half a million people, making it a Tier 2 city -- and meaning elections would be required before the city could annex any land.

Annexations have been an occasionally contentious issue in Conroe, with Mayor Pro Tem Duke Coon describing "forced annexation" as being "very troublesome at times."

Coon notes that although cities need to have the ability to expand, the new law will give residents living in Tier 2 cities "a voice" during annexations.

The matter was a subject of debate during Conroe's 2016 mayoral race, with Toby Powell, who mounted a successful campaign to become the city's mayor, promising during a political forum that if he were elected, there would be "no more forced annexations in the city of Conroe."

An April 30, 2016, article in The Courier covering the forum reported that Powell argued against any more annexation because of safety and budgeting concerns.

"(Public safety) comes first and foremost in all areas; we need to beef up our police department. We have to work to budgetize our new budgets to work on our fire protection and get the response times back down to where they should be," he said. "The massive annexations we've had have put us in such a financial burden right now that we're going to have to be cautious about what we do in the next budget time and the next few years."

Figures provided by the city show that Conroe annexed 11 parcels of land, with a little more than 1,328 acres in 2015. But in 2016, according to Conroe Director of Community Development Nancy Mikeska, the city "did not complete a substantial annexation"and will approach future annexation proposals cautiously.

"Current city leaders are very conservative regarding annexation," Mikeska said. "The new annexation law, allows the city to continue annexations because the restrictions were governed by county population at the time of the census count. Knowing the law has changed, and not knowing what the next legislative session will bring, staff will be looking carefully at our annexation plan for the future."